Some shops at TipToe Lane were closed while others were in active business
Unlicensed Nigerian shops at Tiptoe Lane, near the Kwame Nkrumah Circle Interchange in Accra, were closed in the early hours of yesterday by a team of personnel from the Ghana Immigration Service and Ghana Police Service.
The exercise formed part of efforts by the government to rid Ghana’s retail sector of foreigners, an initiative that has generated a lot of controversies in recent times.
It was revealed that the Police and Immigration personnel requested shop owners to provide working permits, passports and other relevant documents in order to prove their stay in Ghana.
Persons, who failed to provide such documents, had their shops closed by the team and asked to visit the Immigration Office for further actions to be taken.
Some shop owners, who resisted arrest, were handcuffed and conveyed to a nearby police station.
Reports also indicated that the Police/Immigration team seized some items and commodities found in some shops after taking inventory of the said items.
An affected shop owner, who refused to disclose his name, lamented about the disruption to his business.
He disclosed that his wife who was at the shop at the time the operation was arrested and taken to the police station.
However, some other shops owned by Nigerians were still operating after the exercise.
The foreign shop owners reportedly received information prior to the operation and locked up their shops.
By Nii Adjei Mensahfio